Kunitsu-Gami is the kind of grand, left-wing Capcom release we don’t see very often these days. Path of the Goddess, which will eventually become a cult classic, is original and doesn’t rely on any of Capcom’s established IPs. Instead, it relies on an admittedly difficult-to-explain but well-executed gameplay loop that I found demanding to put down, with an art style that’s just as demanding to look away from.
Players take on the role of Soh, a masked swordsman tasked with protecting the divine maiden Yoshiro as she slowly dances along the path of Mt. Kafuku to cleanse it of invading demons. During the day, Yoshiro moves around the level while you explore to find experience points and villagers who can be tasked to lend a hand protect the maiden at night, when demons pour out of gates in all directions. The loop is intense and engaging as you race through levels in daylight to prepare and fight demons under the moon.
Kunitsu-Gami is certainly original, but it’s not uninspired. If I had to put it in a genre, I’d say tower defense with a bulky dose of Pikmin, but I spent a lot of time executing sword combos, strategically placing troops before and during battles, and even restoring every village I saved between action-oriented levels. Kunitsu-Gami never overdoes it, and it doesn’t spend too much time making you repeat yourself.
The moment I got the basics down, I would encounter a boss that made me reassess my strategies, or I would be forced to play through a scenario while crossing a lake on a series of boats. I was impressed by how Kunitsu-Gami never let me get too comfortable and forced me to try fresh strategies in fresh places in a way that was thrilling rather than frustrating. There are even levels where all you can do is direct your dwellers, with no way to fight yourself, and even those were thrilling and fun.
The New Game Plus options and harder difficulty levels will undoubtedly test your resolve, but I appreciated that the strategy and action never became overly complicated or arduous. Nothing frustrates me more in similar genres than spending hours preparing for a fight only to have it fall apart at the end and force a long restart. I certainly had to retry some attempts, but I never felt completely cheated, and thankfully no level is so long that restarting becomes a constant chore.
Between Yoshiro’s protection levels and boss fights, you return to rescued villages and assign villagers to repair their demon-damaged homes. Restoring villages rewards experience and other goods that can be used to upgrade Soh and the various classes of villagers. This straightforward loop often had me up slow. The serene periods between action sequences serve to get you excited to try out fresh upgrades, and are great for preparing you for the next attempt—I always fell victim to it.
Kunitsu-Gami’s story is airy but effective, with each moment presented through straightforward choreography without dialogue. I found myself more invested in the power-up loop than the story, and it felt like it ended without an emotionally satisfying conclusion, but I enjoyed following the path of Mt. Kafuku. Time will tell if Capcom pushes Kunitsu-Gami in the same direction as games like Monster Hunter or Resident Evil, but I’d be perfectly joyful if it existed forever as a perfect standalone experiment that yielded satisfying results.
